Nice cabs, nice granite

I'd concentrate on backsplash, indeed(the current one is too matte..sucking light..anything mire reflective like ceramics will make a huge difference. I understand when they used-I think it's travertine?-next to very busy brown granites..but your's not very busy, can take simple colored tile. One just needs to mind the color)

And-I'd change flooring. Can be still movement but different. Not stone-like for example. Pattern? Or-how it's layed? Or-different color? what material you had in mind?

Painting usually comes last, when you know the rest of your finishes.

The materials in your current kitchen appear to be of good quality. Rather than replace, have you considered adding an island to the kitchen with good storage space in it? You could then clear all your stuff off the counters which would improve the look of your kitchen greatly. Your island then can be the place with color....there are many examples here on Houzz of brightly painted islands. What colors do you like? And adding color to your living area will help the whole space...art, drapes, pillows, you name it...Good luck

The cabinets and countertops are fine. The flooring would be the first thing I'd change. Running the hardwood you have in the living room into the kitchen would instantly brighten the room. The backsplash could also be updated.

Work in stages from the least expensive to the most:

1. First and foremost you need to do a big reorganizing of your kitchen to find more storage space and reduce the visual clutter. Even if your kiddos and partner create a tornado, it will be lessened by finding a place for things like the cake stand, cutting boards, basket of food on countertop.

2. Paint the walls a nice bright white. It is the least expensive and easiest option for adding light.

3. Do you have good under cabinet lighting?

4. Add a sisal or jute runner the length of the sink cabinet wall to brighten up the floor.

If these ideas don't help enough then move on to flooring and lastly backsplash.

I agree with threers. Everyone has different taste. Don't ever paint those cabinets! I personally don't like dark counter and dark floors. But these are really nice nonetheless. Maybe just live with it for a while. Maybe you'll end up liking the things you don't. Saying your backsplash is "too matte" is the dumbest thing I've heard. If you change it, in a few years people are gonna be saying your backsplash is to shiny.

If it were me, I'd change the floor and granite to lighter ones. It would do wonders and show off those beautiful cabinets. Again, Don't paint those beautiful cherry cabinets. Its like when a beautiful woman puts on waaay to much makeup or any at all. You hide the beauty, not make it better.

Maybe it's because I'm married to an electrician, and my kitchen is lit so brightly you could see it from space, but it really looks like you could use a few more high hats. I often hear people say they want light cabinets because they don't want a dark kitchen. If it's well lit, it is never going to be dark (well, except of course when the lights are out!) Unfortunately the dark countertop is absorbing light, but I get that changing that is not an option for you. Do not paint the cabinets!!

I have wood cabinets, but light counters and backsplash and do love the lighter colors. However, the one thing which made a big difference was under cabinet lighting. It seems like such a little thing because it's not a big change like new countertops - but it makes such a difference! One of my friends is slowly redoing parts of her wood kitchen. She just put in a light floor and under cabinet lighting. The whole space looks so much better even though she still has old laminate countertops.

"Saying your backsplash is "too matte" is the dumbest thing I've heard."-well thank you Tony..do I get a prize?)) or something?

I didn't express myself too well I guess..ceramics can be matte too for example(and I prefer it to shiny..purely personal stuff)

It's the stone becaksplash thing. Not every stone-this particular one. Can be made better or worse, depending on surrounding materials and space itself. Here, not a fan. The OP stated he hates it-I took it into account too when answering.

sorry for not being a fan of travertine that looks like it was put up to work better with flooring, that the OP seems not to like as much neither.

But if you put me personally in this kitchen to live there-it might be that I'd say "ah ok I'd live with it at is and think some more", and that "some more" might take me couple years.

Flooring is the element that usually bugs me the most, probably being too big of a surface, if I dislike it actively.

I don't know whether Cameron dislikes theirs actively.

I agree with everyone about not painting the cabinets.

Replace the flooring with something lighter and then decide on the rest. I'm of the school of thought that doesn't go for hardwoods in a kitchen and I'd put in ceramic or luxury vinyl tile.

@Carolina, AGREED. I never understood wood floors in the kitchen. Its like putting carpet in the bathroom, dumb.

For the backsplash, as an alternative or accent, you might want to
consider an easy-to-install peel & stick approach for wall tiles that’s
less costly and time consuming, yet very stylish and enhanced with 3D subtlety.
Sometimes the small details can really make a design. Check out a few ideas
here https://www.houzz.com/projects/1262017/kitchen-backsplash

"Its like putting carpet in the bathroom, dumb." *shudders* My in-laws did that and we had to rip out both bathroom floors and replace after they passed away and we were selling the house. Nightmare!

Tony, why can't people ask themselves this simple question before they make hard-to-change decisions: "What could possibly go wrong?" It pops into my mind immediately when I'm presented with a choice.

Thank you all! Tony, your comments gave me a good laugh and I agree. I really do love the warmth of the wood, it’s the darkness of the floor/counters that suck the life out of the room. They’re all very nice features the original owners put in during original build.

Main Line, I layer light like it’s my job throughout the rest of the house but the kitchen is the one place I haven’t done much lighting. I built the fixture for the eat in to drop some light there but that’s about it. Maybe a couple more top hats and island with pendant?

Here’s a lit photo.

My thoughts from your comments are: immediate options: new jute runner in lighter fiber for sink wall, off-white wall paint, more lights. Evaluate change. Then price porcelain tile in cream pulled from current backsplash and island.

I get that it looks terribly messy. This is not the norm. Sometimes I clean before posting here just to avoid the inevitable comments on how to tidy up. Thank you to those who saw past it!

First,I would up the lighting. Then the floor. Would consider wood,because I am dumb like that and I prefer seamless transitions between spaces. (I've also had wood or engineered woods in my kitchens for many years with no problems) Lastly I would tackle the backsplash, choosing a tile that will bounce the light around a bit. Something less matte.

What Kendrah said.

Hi Cameron,

So nice to see REAL pictures, from a real home!

Can you change out some of the upper cabinet doors for glass, put all your pretty wine glasses in it and have some in cabinet lighting?

Your kitchen is very green (to me), but with the white grout in both the floor and backsplash tiles, I really do think some simple, lighter paint (for now) would make a huge change. Maybe swap out the greenish looking bar stools too?

I vote YES to a big huge rug, just to see if you like it. I know I would.

Can't wait to hear what you choose! Have fun!

My first thought was undercabinet lighting. My second thought was decluttering (though I understand that may be a losing battle).

What are your base cabinets like inside? Are you able to make efficient use of that storage space? While I am a big proponent of drawers over pullouts, I think pullouts are better than base cabinet shelves, and could help you better organize your space. I built pullouts for my Mom's apartment kitchen using Blum metaboxes - they were not difficult to build or install, and have made a huge impact on her kitchen, especially since she isn't able to lean down to dig things out of the back of lower cabinets.

Base cabinets are all pullouts on the peninsula. Storage is actually very efficient already. Everything has a place when I have it put away.

I've had hardwood floors in my various kitchens now for over 35 years! They are fabulous! And yes, my kitchen door does open directly to the outside - a throw rug at the door is very important. I have had as many as 5 dogs and 3 cats or 5 cats and 3 dogs, at once and it was wonderful - easy to just use a Swifter sweeper to sweep up all that pet hair - beats lots of mopping!

The only other material I've liked as well was natural Vermont slate which we had in our tiny, galley kitchen dorm faculty apt in Maine. All that snow being tracked in for everyone! It was a great flooring for Maine or anywhere in New England.

But even here my wood has worked with snow. Mother Nature threw us a loop on Tues/Wed with 9" of soft, wet spring snow. My dog (long hair, lovely feathering, untrimmed feet) went out and came back in covered with "snow balls" hanging off all her feathers, and her feet clogged with snow balls. She shook herself mightily before I could grab the bath towel I always keep in the kitchen for her and I then had snow balls all over my wood kitchen floors.

My first priority was to get her down to my semi-finished basement to dry out. I'm having too much trouble breathing to put her in the sink to dissolve those poor feet. She took care of them herself very quickly in my basement. Two hours later, I went back upstairs, expecting to use the Swifter Sweeper to wipe up the melted snowballs. All gone! Evaporated completely! No damage to floor.

I would actually love to have my hardwoods extended all the way through. I hate this tile unfortunately.

I think you have a great kitchen! I wouldn’t even consider changing the granite; it looks great with the cabinets. The backsplash? Yeah, I’d go simpler, with no special design over the sink. And I might even remove the appliance garage. I’d replace the double-bowl sink with a single-bowl (that’s simply my functional preference; there’s nothing wrong with your sink aesthetically) and add lighting above the sink. And speaking of lighting: it’s all at the perimeter of the kitchen (no wonder it feels dark!) and placement of the recessed cans is just...bizarre!

Sammy, right??? As I’ve sat here for an insane amount of time now staring at the kitchen I’ve decided the lighting is super oddly placed and that I despise the backsplash. I had been looking at subway tiles (plain white) the other day but thought they might look too stark against the style of the cabinets and the granite. Maybe that’s just my brain not seeing past the existing blah. Any recommendations for swapping out the backsplash and floor tiles? I was thinking a lighter grey slate without any patterning/movement on it for floors? At a loss for backsplash. The more I look at it I just see patterns everywhere (backsplash/granite/floor) and it’s all too busy. I prefer to have neutral bases and build in color and design in with furniture/decor accents. We have a great electrician that just put in about a dozen other cans for us (I think prior owners were vampires). Going to get him in for lighting over sink and additional lighting in the kitchen ceiling.

I was very surprised that the undercabinet lighting brightened my kitchen so much!

Cameron, I might have some suggestions about flooring and backsplash, but first wpuld be helpful to understand your preferences

For example I see taupe throw and taupe(let's hope I call the colrs by their right names) counter chairs..now the question-did you pick them up so they tie the adjacent space better with the kitchen(because they do), or is taupe one of yourfavoorite colors anyway?

I als see blue accents..glass..kitchen paint color..

would it be safe to say you like blue? who chose wall colors?

for now it's hard to think of what change you'd prefer exactly because you're surrounded by other colors, but I believe you'll do fine..I think you're sensitive to how things work together, will take some figuring out as everything does, yet it will be great in the end.

*sorry for the typos, they're plenty, I know

My palette is greys, whites, beige/taupes and blues and greens. I have blue and green glass running through most rooms of the house, ties into living room rug and dining room wall color. I mostly have antiques bronze/wrought iron metal hardware on everything. I love getting dimension from mixing textiles and natural materials (metals, stones, glass) and putting that against a very neutral palette. I know it’s not everyone’s cup of tea but it’s peaceful and calming to me. I repainted every wall in the house but maintained the kitchen wall color because I liked how it fit the eat-in and couldn’t come up with a better plan (hence where I’m at now on here - oooh, I’ll change the cabinets, no the countertops, no the floors/walls/etc). The color from the kitchen continues through the entry way (side kitchen door) to the half bath and laundry room as does the same tile. Attaching more pictures of other areas of the house for style reference. Dining room is incomplete and I’m in process of building the shelving/butcher block table for the laundry room.

as I suspected...you'lldo just fine))

now. that's lot of tile to change. Do you dislike it intensively everywhere? Because if yes it's the whole other scope of things..

Thank you for the vote of confidence! And yes, I really do dislike it quite a bit. I measured it out last night and it’s roughly 300sqft throughout. I was thinking maybe a lighter grey slate like this https://goo.gl/images/rKXfw9 but I am having a really hard time visualizing it and and a coordinating backsplash for some reason. I think they grey slate would look great in the entry/bath/laundry. Just not sure if it would come out how I hope it might contrasting against the warmth of the cherry and the granite.

Very charming home! I like the cabinets and the countertops, but I am biased because I picked black granite with stained cabinets in my remodel last year :) I'd prioritize continuing the hardwood floors into the kitchen (I have those too and no issues). The tiles don't bother me as much in the other spaces...maybe because there's not as much of it?

I wouldn't recommend that backsplash if you were starting from scratch, but I think it will look better when the pattern isn't fighting with the floor. If you have the budget I'd do a ceramic subway tile.

Hi Cameron,

Ohhh, I just noticed the sweet tired old doggie on his bed in front of the fireplace..so sweet!

What is your budget, and how long do you plan on staying in this house? What is your time frame for any/all of these projects? Sorry if I missed it.

I'm dying to ask..are the columns load bearing? I know you said your style is "modern rustic."

I, personally, like the idea of grey slate

and then the backsplash can be something like very light pearl gray..or darker off-white..))) shouldn't be too cool a color, shouldn't be too warm a color. hmm. handmade of course will have lots of shades..but will be pricier

on the other hand I just checked Daltile, and they want 7 bucks for a sample? One can go to their store I suppose though.

I like contrasts too. when one considers them. you obviously do.

just white tile(backsplash) might be too stark?

in any case, that's picking a lot of samples, and trying them in your space in your light. As with all hard finishes. Better than trying sample next to slabs though)) yours already in place.

but as you'll bring samples I believe the visualizing will get easier

you also might stumble upon something you haven't thought about before. Happenned to me.

your dog is adorable!

I vote to replace the floor and the pendant lights. Then see how you feel about the backsplash. The cabinets look beautiful.

I just reread all comments on your problem( it's interesting to see which questions get multiple responses and some questions, very few). Your original problems were the lighting and the flooring...so add a few more spots in your ceiling..how many and where, I will leave to you and the lighting experts. IMO, your floors are a problem...they are too dark and soak up the light. If you can, I would recommend extending the wood flooring as far as you can afford. I have had wood flooring in my kitchen for fifteen years and looks as good as new. Of course, it needs to be a fairly good quality. But then everything you buy should be as good as you can afford...it will stay looking good, it will make you happy and you will not have to worry about "fixing" it.

Your can lighting isnt even throughout the kitchen. The very center of the kitchen is a big void. You probably could use another 4-5 can lights. I really like the non yellow LED bulbs since the kitchen is a work area. They can really brighten an area. I think Im using 5K color LEDs.

The different cabinet heights are the main thing that bother me. I would pull the two cabinets that are higher and replace, then put an entire extra row of cabinets above the existing cabinets to go to the ceiling.

If you want it lighter, carry your floor into the kitchen. Somehow the color of the wood flooring doesnt match the cabinets though. I prefer natural unstained wood or very dark. Your tile is actually nicely interesting. It might just be a lighting issue.

We agree with redoing the floors and backsplash. The rest of the kitchen looks good.

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